Loan Watch 2012-13: Jesse Lingard vs. Nottingham Forest

After looking comfortable on his debut in midweek, but having to come off with a tight hamstring in the second half, Michael Keane was unavailable for selection today, but Jesse Lingard was able to retain his place on the bench.

As usual, this game was a tight, but having played the better football Leicester went in 2-1 up at half time, courtesy of a deflected goal from Lloyd Dyer, and a lovely lobbed goal from David Nugent.

On the hour mark, David Nugent had to come off with a neck injury, and he was replaced by Jesse Lingard, who came on to play just behind the lone front man. East midland derbies are generally enthralling encounters, so coming on as a sub is always difficult, and Lingard’s first ten minutes did show this.

As Lingard got a bit more involved, and started to find his feet, he seemed to gain a little confidence and wanted to get involved and on the ball more. There was no telling contribution from him in what was a difficult game, but on another note he’s certainly a player who will make a big impact, and have a bright future in the game. You can see the boy has obvious talent, and a loan spell will do him good.

The game ended in a 2-2 draw after Simon Cox converted a hotly disputed penalty.